I don;t think there has ever been a truly successful British RnB act for the worldwide market - could JLS be that act? X-Factor judge Louis Walsh was canny enough to pick up on their potential and they haven't let finishing second to Alexandra Burke get to them. The first two singles and first two tracks 'Beat Again' and 'Everybody In Love' sound incredibly confident, predicting the success they'll surely have before they've even had it. Failure isn't really an option and their debut album subesquently leaves nothing to chance. Although at times they come across as a black version of Westlife rather than a new Boyz To Men, JLS do just enough across these thirteen heavily produced, computer generated studio outings to convince the pop marketplace they'll still be around in a few years and albums time. Louis Walsh really does know his stuff when it comes to boy-bands and you've got to admit that, whether you hate him, auto-tune and the whole x-factor thing, or whether you're just an average bloke in the street pop fan. Funnily enough, it's all very well for critics such as myself to get all snobby and stand on our high-horse, but we won't actually change any minds. You're either pre-destined to like this kind of stuff already, or you're not. Simple as that, really. It's not Michael Jackson but it isn't MN8 either, so that's something to be thankful for, really.

Positives then. First two singles are good? Check. Forty-five minutes total album length? Check. No real weak points even though the first two songs are the best? Check.

Negatives - will it appeal to anybody with even the slightest interest in music recorded by actual musicians? No, although 'Close To You' does open with an acoustic guitar even if ultimately 'Close To You' is ever so slightly dull. Anything else to add? Not really, this album is predictable fare, every track between three and four minutes long and pretty unchallenging lyrically and musically. JLS aren't really trying to challenge you though, they're trying to entertain you. Hey, you on your critics pedestal - entertainment isn't a bad thing! I was told that once. Hey, this album isn't a bad thing overall although it's not really a good thing either - it's just modern pop music and all that entails.